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Joe Dillard #6
Blood Money
In the sixth volume of the bestselling Joe Dillard series, Dillard does something he has never done before -- he hires a young associate. Her name is Charleston Story, she is bright and beautiful, and in her very first case, she winds up inheriting an item so valuable that it threatens to destroy her and everything she cares about. As Dillard tries to help and advise his young protege, he finds himself dragged into a web of danger and intrigue, a web so thick that he may never be able to extract himself.
241 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 18, 2013
10973 people are currently reading
2980 people want to read
About the author
Scott Pratt
59 books1,566 followersScott Pratt is a Wall Street Journal and Amazon Bestselling Author whose books have sold more than five million copies. He was born in South Haven, Michigan, and grew up in Jonesborough, Tennessee. He was a veteran of the United States Air Force and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from East Tennessee State University and a Doctor of Jurisprudence from the University of Tennessee. He lived in Johnson City, Tennessee until his tragic, untimely passing in November of 2018.
This page is maintained by his family. We're finishing up all of the projects he was working on when he passed away. If you'd like to stay up to date on that progress, or if you'd just like to say hello, you can visit us on our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/19664...
This page is maintained by his family. We're finishing up all of the projects he was working on when he passed away. If you'd like to stay up to date on that progress, or if you'd just like to say hello, you can visit us on our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/19664...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 655 reviews
March 6, 2021
This is book number six in the Joe Dillard Series. It has been a while since I read book five. I am not sure why it has taken me so long to get back to reading this series. I have thoroughly enjoyed reading it.
The book is well written and moves right along. I enjoy the various characters in the series. I find it interesting that the author, Scott Pratt (1956-2018), has Joe Dillard’s wife fighting metastatic breast cancer in the last few books. It makes the characters seem more real to me as well as how cancer has affected the whole family. It is not what I expected to discover in a legal thriller. In this book we are introduced to a new character; she is Charleston Story known as “Charlie”. She is just out of law school and is working for Joe while waiting to take the Bar examination. This story has no dramatic courtroom drama.
I read this as an audiobook downloaded from Audible. The book is seven hours and thirty-three minutes. Tim Campbell does an excellent job narrating the book. Campbell is a classically trained actor and opera singer. He is also a voice-over actor and Audie Award winning audiobook narrator.
The book is well written and moves right along. I enjoy the various characters in the series. I find it interesting that the author, Scott Pratt (1956-2018), has Joe Dillard’s wife fighting metastatic breast cancer in the last few books. It makes the characters seem more real to me as well as how cancer has affected the whole family. It is not what I expected to discover in a legal thriller. In this book we are introduced to a new character; she is Charleston Story known as “Charlie”. She is just out of law school and is working for Joe while waiting to take the Bar examination. This story has no dramatic courtroom drama.
I read this as an audiobook downloaded from Audible. The book is seven hours and thirty-three minutes. Tim Campbell does an excellent job narrating the book. Campbell is a classically trained actor and opera singer. He is also a voice-over actor and Audie Award winning audiobook narrator.
May 8, 2014
Pratt brings Joe Dillard back for his sixth legal adventure, filled with twists and sub-plots to keep readers satisfied and highly curious. An ambitious young law graduate with a family past tied to Dillard approaches him for a job, leaving Dillard to make some tough decisions at his single-attorney practice. Charlie has determination, charm, gumption, and the eye of young Jack Dillard, all lethal combinations, leaving Joe with little choice but to bring her on, if only for the time being. With Dillard having scaled down his practice to care for his ailing wife, the few open cases they have become central themes throughout the novel. While Dillard focuses his time on dealing with a teenage boy accused of killing a police officer in cold blood (and the authorities who have a blinded vendetta), Charlie helps a older man whose son is trying to declare him incompetent. After the death of Charlie's client, she comes into an unexpected windfall, one that leaves her wondering about legal and ethical possibilities. When news of this 'gift' makes news all the way to Philly, Mob enforcers turn their eyes on small-town Tennessee to collect what they feel they're owed. Dillard finds himself helping a struggling Charlie not only with her decision surrounding the gift, but also how best to keep herself alive in its wake. Will a feud from 80 years ago be her downfall? With great action, legal questions, and just the right amount of thrill, Pratt keeps readers on the edge of their seats from beginning to end, with little chance to relax.
Since I stumbled upon Pratt and his Dillard series, I have become enthralled with all the characters, the stories, and the development of Dillard as a lawyer, husband, and father. In this novel, perhaps his most intense to date, Pratt offers many sub-stories and joins them into a larger story, with skill and ease. Having not read Pratt's RUSSO'S GOLD, I cannot offer any comparison to the original text, though I have been curious to get my hands on a copy. Now that I have read this rewrite, I am eager to see how Pratt presented the original, especially since his Dillard-isation is a stellar piece of work. Readers of the series will surely lap this book up and newbies will surely find many reasons to rush out and learn more about this Tennessee legal beagle.
Kudos, Mr. Pratt for an entertaining and thoroughly enjoyable piece of work. I am eager to see what else you have on offer and if Dillard's softer side will emerge more often.
Since I stumbled upon Pratt and his Dillard series, I have become enthralled with all the characters, the stories, and the development of Dillard as a lawyer, husband, and father. In this novel, perhaps his most intense to date, Pratt offers many sub-stories and joins them into a larger story, with skill and ease. Having not read Pratt's RUSSO'S GOLD, I cannot offer any comparison to the original text, though I have been curious to get my hands on a copy. Now that I have read this rewrite, I am eager to see how Pratt presented the original, especially since his Dillard-isation is a stellar piece of work. Readers of the series will surely lap this book up and newbies will surely find many reasons to rush out and learn more about this Tennessee legal beagle.
Kudos, Mr. Pratt for an entertaining and thoroughly enjoyable piece of work. I am eager to see what else you have on offer and if Dillard's softer side will emerge more often.
July 27, 2023
4.5 Stars
February 19, 2015
Hmm.
I love the Joe Dillard series. I find them to be very much addictive. But to be totally frank regarding this book in the series, it misses the mark. It isn't a book about Joe Dillard. He barely has supporting role, and it doesn't qualify as a leading role. This book was about Charlie Story. I'm sorry to say it just didn't keep my interest, or fit in with the rest of this series.
I love the Joe Dillard series. I find them to be very much addictive. But to be totally frank regarding this book in the series, it misses the mark. It isn't a book about Joe Dillard. He barely has supporting role, and it doesn't qualify as a leading role. This book was about Charlie Story. I'm sorry to say it just didn't keep my interest, or fit in with the rest of this series.
October 17, 2014
Two interesting story lines
The Joe Dillard books are good courtroom reads but I found this to be somewhat of a mishmash. There is the main storyline about the ,"blood money" and actually an other storyline that is somewhat awkwardly intertwined. I think that the jumps back and forth are distracting and not really necessary as the main story is entertaining and the other storyline could have made a good book by itself
The Joe Dillard books are good courtroom reads but I found this to be somewhat of a mishmash. There is the main storyline about the ,"blood money" and actually an other storyline that is somewhat awkwardly intertwined. I think that the jumps back and forth are distracting and not really necessary as the main story is entertaining and the other storyline could have made a good book by itself
May 20, 2015
I have no idea why, but for some reason I didn't really care for this one very much. To some degree it lacked the character development we've seen in other books. Most of the book is focused on a new character - Charlie Story - and we lose Leon Bates, Joe Dillard, Caroline, Sarah, and Lilly. Jack gets a little more attention, but not much.
I also didn't care too much for the story generally.
Hoping I like the next one more!
I also didn't care too much for the story generally.
Hoping I like the next one more!
July 25, 2016
I would have to agree with other reviewers that there wasn’t enough of Joe Dillard in this 6th book. Indeed, as it appears, Joe decides without much vetting to hire a trainee, Charleston Story, a young law graduate, who seems to steal Joe and his son’s Jack’s heart, but not this reader. I needed a lot more fleshing out of this character before I liked her – and that never came. That young woman will be making one terribly wrong decision after the other in a short time, causing a lot of pain around her.
I will only say that I devoured the pages that Joe was at the center of the story, defending Jordan Scott. That’s what I expect of this series: Joe’s wit and smarts. Too bad there wasn’t enough of those in this installment.
I've enjoyed these books so far - and now with this one, they've become below average. (**2,5** rating).
I will only say that I devoured the pages that Joe was at the center of the story, defending Jordan Scott. That’s what I expect of this series: Joe’s wit and smarts. Too bad there wasn’t enough of those in this installment.
I've enjoyed these books so far - and now with this one, they've become below average. (**2,5** rating).
May 27, 2014
I didn't think this book was as good as the other books in the Joe Dillard series. It was rewritten from an earlier book to include Joe Dillard so most of the book is about a young woman named Charlie.
July 29, 2017
Very good plot and kept me wanting to read more. I even read during my breaks at work. Would definitely suggest to pick this up to read if you want something good.
January 15, 2016
In this 6th Joe Dillard novel (each stands alone) Joe takes on a young, pretty female intern, who just finished law school, needs experience, and can offer Joe some help preparing for a case. With his wife still battling cancer and taking chemo, she has his priority. Joe's son Jack is also working at his Dad's doing case research. Jack is attracted to this new addition to the staff, Charlie Story. This novel centers around Charlie's personal life, not so much Joe's. I found it interesting and did not mind that it wasn't so much about the Dillard personal family story. Enough is mentioned so that the reader knows what's going on with the Dillard family.
The entire novel kept my interest as always, I just thought it wrapped up rather suddenly. Without taking us into the actual court room and trial, It gave us a good idea of what result transpired in Joe's current case defending a young black man being tried for the murder of a white policeman who was raping girls. That was a powerful plot line that draws the reader right in. It also gave us an idea of where Charlie and Jack's personal relationship is headed, but all within a very few pages to wrap it up.
I've enjoyed each Joe Dillard novel, and am now moving on to the last one, #7. Sad to know there isn't any more.
The entire novel kept my interest as always, I just thought it wrapped up rather suddenly. Without taking us into the actual court room and trial, It gave us a good idea of what result transpired in Joe's current case defending a young black man being tried for the murder of a white policeman who was raping girls. That was a powerful plot line that draws the reader right in. It also gave us an idea of where Charlie and Jack's personal relationship is headed, but all within a very few pages to wrap it up.
I've enjoyed each Joe Dillard novel, and am now moving on to the last one, #7. Sad to know there isn't any more.
October 30, 2023
I'm reading (listening to) Joe Dillard's serie in a row and I find it a pretty solid serie. It starts as kind of a legal thriller but the court drama vanishes after 2 or 3 novels and it becomes mostly a family saga intertwined with thriller/procedural plots. I love novels narrated in first person even if I'm not very fond of lawyers with a inclination to get "western" so often (it reminds me a bit Steve Martini's Madriani serie)
Till book #5 all stories were good, consistent and enjoyable. This sixth installment is a bit of a fumble. Dillard's on the background, the main plot revolves around a not very credible situation and the secondary plot gets abruptly to an end without any deep explaination.
Anyway I'm going to finish the serie: I know fumbles happen even to the best.
Till book #5 all stories were good, consistent and enjoyable. This sixth installment is a bit of a fumble. Dillard's on the background, the main plot revolves around a not very credible situation and the secondary plot gets abruptly to an end without any deep explaination.
Anyway I'm going to finish the serie: I know fumbles happen even to the best.
January 16, 2018
Book was an excellent mix of horror and comedy that gives the reader a sense of fulfillment after every paragraph read. After every chapter you feel this euphoria that is better than ANYTHING on this entire earth. Child birth doesn't even compare to this book, nothing compares to this masterpiece of literature. I feel as if I am one with this book, I feel that in another life I am the author writing this book, our spirits will live on forever in harmony in this book. My life goal is to die reading this masterful of modern literature. No spoilers, but everyone dies.
May 14, 2020
I’ve read a couple of this author’s books and I was pulled into them! The stories were written so well that I had to read every free minute of my day However, this one was difficult for me to stick with and keep reading. Does this mean it was bad? No, I’m not saying that at all. The story, to me, wasn’t as compelling as the others. This was a good book; just slow to start, rough middle, and okay ending. If you like this author, you will like this book.
January 4, 2018
Awesome
I so much enjoy reading the Joe Dillard series. Scott is such a great writer. I know others will enjoy them to!
I so much enjoy reading the Joe Dillard series. Scott is such a great writer. I know others will enjoy them to!
March 29, 2018
I cant get enough of Joe Dillard!
I’ve ignored my work, my messy house, and all my responsibilities while in just over a week I’ve read the prior books. Now for the next one!
I’ve ignored my work, my messy house, and all my responsibilities while in just over a week I’ve read the prior books. Now for the next one!
October 6, 2017
A little too quick to wrap up. The tension was good, then every problem got solved rapidly. But a good read.
August 28, 2022
Disappointed in this one.
September 2, 2015
Great deal of passion over $50 million in gold.
I enjoyed how the author used historically based ideas regarding a mob member's gold and an honest bootlegger who trust and do business with each other. The mobster lived in Philadelphia and the bootlegger lived in Tennessee. The mobster gets sentenced to prison for awhile, so he converts his ill gotten gains into large gold bars and has the bootlegger hide them for him on his property. Mobster was killed in prison and bootlegger decided to keep gold. Unfortunately, others come with their Tommy guns and kill most of the family without finding the gold. Back then, the gold was worth a bit over a million dollars. However, now it is worth over fifty million.
A family descendant finds the stash and the story begins in present time. Big money can make people do desperate things. Joe is back to being a private lawyer with his son, Jack, clerking for Joe during his summer break of law school. Caroline is still fighting cancer that metastasized from her original breast cancer. Joe's sister, Sarah, is staying drug free and raising her child, and running a diner. Joe's daughter, Lily, got married and had a baby.
Great main plot with very good subplots and excellent characters. Well done, Scott!
I enjoyed how the author used historically based ideas regarding a mob member's gold and an honest bootlegger who trust and do business with each other. The mobster lived in Philadelphia and the bootlegger lived in Tennessee. The mobster gets sentenced to prison for awhile, so he converts his ill gotten gains into large gold bars and has the bootlegger hide them for him on his property. Mobster was killed in prison and bootlegger decided to keep gold. Unfortunately, others come with their Tommy guns and kill most of the family without finding the gold. Back then, the gold was worth a bit over a million dollars. However, now it is worth over fifty million.
A family descendant finds the stash and the story begins in present time. Big money can make people do desperate things. Joe is back to being a private lawyer with his son, Jack, clerking for Joe during his summer break of law school. Caroline is still fighting cancer that metastasized from her original breast cancer. Joe's sister, Sarah, is staying drug free and raising her child, and running a diner. Joe's daughter, Lily, got married and had a baby.
Great main plot with very good subplots and excellent characters. Well done, Scott!
May 23, 2015
The author indicated that this was a re-write of another book (Russo's Gold). It really seemed that way. It lacked focus. The main plot kinda ended flat and the other (the trial) had no real ending at all. There were a ton a characters and yet none really got developed. The story just wondered.
March 28, 2016
Better than. average Joe Dillard thriller. However, Joe only makes some occasional cameo's. within novel. A new cast of characters carries this one alone. Joe's son Jack gets some feature time. Caroline is barely hanging in there from advanced cancer. I liked the newest characters a lot. They added much needed jump to a somewhat stuck in the mud series. Giving this one a solid four stars out of a possible five stars. Book was an enjoyable and an entertaining read. Check this one out !
February 25, 2017
I have always been a fan of Scott Pratt, but this book was a disaster. A legal graduate, Charlie Stone, asks Dillinger for a job. She takes a case to him to defend a man who killed a man who had raped his girl-friend. Charlie inherits a lot of land, in which there is a cave with a great treasure. Obviously, the bad guys are after it. Remember Ali Baba? Well this is much worse, maybe interesting for a young kid. An utter and complete disappointment!!!
November 16, 2014
Another winner by Pratt! He definitely knows legal crime Southern thriller.
I hope this is not the end of the Joe Dillard series, as going to miss listening--having devoured 1-6 back to back. Now I need to catch up on the reviews for each. Highly recommend the audio version as Tim Campbell and Scott Pratt are a match made in heaven! More to come.
I hope this is not the end of the Joe Dillard series, as going to miss listening--having devoured 1-6 back to back. Now I need to catch up on the reviews for each. Highly recommend the audio version as Tim Campbell and Scott Pratt are a match made in heaven! More to come.
January 25, 2022
Another very good installment in the Joe Dillard series. The new young female character just out of law school is a good character, I hope she returns in future novels. I could have used a bit of a bigger role for Joe, but overall a very good book. And for some reason all of the Dillard books are quick reads.
January 1, 2017
Fabulous holiday diverson
What adventure-filled lives Scott's characters live. Most importantly, Sadie wasn't harmed nor was anyone she loved. All's well that ends well.
What adventure-filled lives Scott's characters live. Most importantly, Sadie wasn't harmed nor was anyone she loved. All's well that ends well.
January 18, 2017
Blood Money
I love all of his books! There is a little of everything suspense, law, family and friendship in all of his books.
I love all of his books! There is a little of everything suspense, law, family and friendship in all of his books.
November 16, 2017
A multi-layered thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat. Didn't like the descriptive gratuitous violence in one part but otherwise most enjoyable.
May 15, 2021
Another good story about principled Tennessee lawyer Joe Dillard, involving a corrupt sheriff, a new legal assistant, Philadelphia gangsters and a schizophrenic stalker. Good pacy narrative
January 4, 2018
I became an enthusiastic fan of Scott Pratt after reading his debut novel An Innocent Client. Subsequent stories that featured his protagonist Joe Dillard, notably installments #2, #3, and #4, were collectively disappointing in that the author repeatedly failed to reach the bar he established with his widely acclaimed first outing.
Frankly, I took a breather after INJUSTICE FOR ALL Book #4 which I disliked and felt that the author had not only dropped the ball but betrayed the reader. It is the end of the year and I had multiple books by Pratt still left on my Kindle unread. I decided to tie up loose ends and read at least the next two books in the series.
I recently finished reading Blood Money (Joe Dillard Series Book 6).
It was an interesting enough story, but unfortunately did not prove to be special in any way whatsoever. Joe is more or less a bystander, and our protagonist is a beautiful street smart young law graduate named "Charlie". She persuades Joe to hire her a little too easily much to the delight of his handsome young son Jack.
There are divergent plotlines, but the "Main Feature" is the tale of Charlie and how she handles the unlikely circumstance of around $55 million dollars in gold landing in her lap. Her immediate reaction is pretty much predictable from the perspective of a young woman who has grown up knowing only hard knocks and had developed a certain toughness to make it in this world. She daydreams of faraway lands and all of the wonders that being filthy rich would bring.
This is not a legal thriller, not a police procedural, not a "Joe Dillard" story, and well, not even a mystery. Joe is all but a peripheral character in this tale of buried treasure which is by all accounts "blood money"---and its effects on the people whose lives it touches. We are also treated to a G-Rated romance courtesy of Joe's lovesick son Jack and our pretty young heroine. The plot is driven along by the obstacles that stand between Charlie and the tainted trove of gold---including the unscrupulous son of the man who willed her the property with the cave hiding the cache of gold, a schizophrenic homicidal stalker, and a pair of low-life sadistic Mafia wannabe freaks. It's never a dull moment as Charlie, her colorful and lethal uncle, Joe and Jack all face off against the "bad guys". Charlie must wrangle with the consequences of her desire to keep the riches for herself when she and everything she loves in the world is suddenly jeopardized. The ending is totally predictable but (in my opinion) simply not believable. The character of Charlie just isn't well enough developed for me to "buy" that despite the catastrophic obstacles that she would dynamite the mine and walk away from the riches.
I mentioned divergent plots...well maybe it could more accurately be deemed a subplot...is actually pretty interesting. We see some of Leon (from prior novels) and Joe Dillard's legal mastery get to shine a little in the closure on this additional story line. A good man Jordan Scott is charged with murder when he shoots an unarmed man in the head as he flees from the crime of rape. It could have made a fascinating legal thriller in its own right.
I would give this book 2.5 Stars but since I can't, I have to go with 2 Stars. It may interest the self-published author to know that at the time I write this review there are a total of 3180 Reviews on Amazon and this novel is sporting a 4.6 Star Rating to entice would-be readers. Joe Dillard is a two million copy best selling series. That is why it is sad to see a FAKESPOT REVIEW GRADE D with 40% Low Quality Reviews reported and an adjusted rating of 2.5 Stars. I am not sure how fake reviews are accumulated, but as an author I would want to know it is happening, and as a reader I would like to be knowledgeable about this troublesome fact as well.
Frankly, I took a breather after INJUSTICE FOR ALL Book #4 which I disliked and felt that the author had not only dropped the ball but betrayed the reader. It is the end of the year and I had multiple books by Pratt still left on my Kindle unread. I decided to tie up loose ends and read at least the next two books in the series.
I recently finished reading Blood Money (Joe Dillard Series Book 6).
It was an interesting enough story, but unfortunately did not prove to be special in any way whatsoever. Joe is more or less a bystander, and our protagonist is a beautiful street smart young law graduate named "Charlie". She persuades Joe to hire her a little too easily much to the delight of his handsome young son Jack.
There are divergent plotlines, but the "Main Feature" is the tale of Charlie and how she handles the unlikely circumstance of around $55 million dollars in gold landing in her lap. Her immediate reaction is pretty much predictable from the perspective of a young woman who has grown up knowing only hard knocks and had developed a certain toughness to make it in this world. She daydreams of faraway lands and all of the wonders that being filthy rich would bring.
This is not a legal thriller, not a police procedural, not a "Joe Dillard" story, and well, not even a mystery. Joe is all but a peripheral character in this tale of buried treasure which is by all accounts "blood money"---and its effects on the people whose lives it touches. We are also treated to a G-Rated romance courtesy of Joe's lovesick son Jack and our pretty young heroine. The plot is driven along by the obstacles that stand between Charlie and the tainted trove of gold---including the unscrupulous son of the man who willed her the property with the cave hiding the cache of gold, a schizophrenic homicidal stalker, and a pair of low-life sadistic Mafia wannabe freaks. It's never a dull moment as Charlie, her colorful and lethal uncle, Joe and Jack all face off against the "bad guys". Charlie must wrangle with the consequences of her desire to keep the riches for herself when she and everything she loves in the world is suddenly jeopardized. The ending is totally predictable but (in my opinion) simply not believable. The character of Charlie just isn't well enough developed for me to "buy" that despite the catastrophic obstacles that she would dynamite the mine and walk away from the riches.
I mentioned divergent plots...well maybe it could more accurately be deemed a subplot...is actually pretty interesting. We see some of Leon (from prior novels) and Joe Dillard's legal mastery get to shine a little in the closure on this additional story line. A good man Jordan Scott is charged with murder when he shoots an unarmed man in the head as he flees from the crime of rape. It could have made a fascinating legal thriller in its own right.
I would give this book 2.5 Stars but since I can't, I have to go with 2 Stars. It may interest the self-published author to know that at the time I write this review there are a total of 3180 Reviews on Amazon and this novel is sporting a 4.6 Star Rating to entice would-be readers. Joe Dillard is a two million copy best selling series. That is why it is sad to see a FAKESPOT REVIEW GRADE D with 40% Low Quality Reviews reported and an adjusted rating of 2.5 Stars. I am not sure how fake reviews are accumulated, but as an author I would want to know it is happening, and as a reader I would like to be knowledgeable about this troublesome fact as well.
November 1, 2019
There's an author's note on this one that it was originally a non-Dillard novel called "Russo's Gold". Frankly, it still reads like a non-Dillard novel, since he's just there to prop up one leg of someone else's story. Spoilers galore, because it will save you some time.
A young lawyer named Charleston (Charlie) Story comes to Dillard to get the required supervision she needs to be able to go out on her own. The case she brings him is a son suing his father in order to have his father declared non compos mentis in order to take his father's land and the value that it represents. We then get this - brand new in town, brand new lawyer - get tagged by a judge to defend a young black man who shot a white police officer as the officer was raping a woman. We also get another viewpoint of some wannabe wiseguys who tell the capo in their area they're not going to be paying up the ladder any longer (said wannabes get a beatdown instead of just being whacked, which is probably a more realistic vision of what would happen, but Carson needed them for the story, so...). There's also a crazy uncle who does taxidermy, and not just of animals. There's also a ridiculous "escape" by the young man who killed the rapist, set up by the sheriff of the county where he's in jail. Oh, and did I mention that there is also gold, just as in the title? Turns out, the old man the young lawyer is defending has willed his entire estate to her? Including the gold some mobster entrusted to one of the old man's ancestors to hide - now worth $55 million bucks.
Sorry to say, this book is a mess. As in a couple of the previous books, there's nothing court-related here unless you get Carson...I mean Dillard, telling us, via a lecture to the prosecuting attorney, how that prosecutor is going to dispose of the case involving the killer of the rapist. Dillard also gives a lecture to the young woman, telling her the gold is "blood money" and she should just leave it there - only someone with a ton of money says something like that about tens of millions of dollars.
In the end, the wannabes are killed by the weirdo uncle, the weirdo uncle gets wounded and dies, and the young lawyer, who has been entirely inconsistent in action throughout the book, decides to just dynamite the cave where the gold, the two dead wannabe mobsters, and her uncle are, then leaves town.
If you like this series, don't read this book. It is SO much worse than anything else in the series, and I can think of only one reason Carson would rework this book to have even a tangential connection to Dillard. It says it right in the title: money.
I might need to take a break from Dillard, as each book is making me more and more irritated with him. Either make him a lawyer, or turn him into Jack Reacher. One or the other would be far more interesting than what we've seen since book two.
A young lawyer named Charleston (Charlie) Story comes to Dillard to get the required supervision she needs to be able to go out on her own. The case she brings him is a son suing his father in order to have his father declared non compos mentis in order to take his father's land and the value that it represents. We then get this - brand new in town, brand new lawyer - get tagged by a judge to defend a young black man who shot a white police officer as the officer was raping a woman. We also get another viewpoint of some wannabe wiseguys who tell the capo in their area they're not going to be paying up the ladder any longer (said wannabes get a beatdown instead of just being whacked, which is probably a more realistic vision of what would happen, but Carson needed them for the story, so...). There's also a crazy uncle who does taxidermy, and not just of animals. There's also a ridiculous "escape" by the young man who killed the rapist, set up by the sheriff of the county where he's in jail. Oh, and did I mention that there is also gold, just as in the title? Turns out, the old man the young lawyer is defending has willed his entire estate to her? Including the gold some mobster entrusted to one of the old man's ancestors to hide - now worth $55 million bucks.
Sorry to say, this book is a mess. As in a couple of the previous books, there's nothing court-related here unless you get Carson...I mean Dillard, telling us, via a lecture to the prosecuting attorney, how that prosecutor is going to dispose of the case involving the killer of the rapist. Dillard also gives a lecture to the young woman, telling her the gold is "blood money" and she should just leave it there - only someone with a ton of money says something like that about tens of millions of dollars.
In the end, the wannabes are killed by the weirdo uncle, the weirdo uncle gets wounded and dies, and the young lawyer, who has been entirely inconsistent in action throughout the book, decides to just dynamite the cave where the gold, the two dead wannabe mobsters, and her uncle are, then leaves town.
If you like this series, don't read this book. It is SO much worse than anything else in the series, and I can think of only one reason Carson would rework this book to have even a tangential connection to Dillard. It says it right in the title: money.
I might need to take a break from Dillard, as each book is making me more and more irritated with him. Either make him a lawyer, or turn him into Jack Reacher. One or the other would be far more interesting than what we've seen since book two.
July 28, 2018
Never Disappointed with ‘Joe Dillard’ or Scott’s writing ❤️
I promise no spoilers and I’m not into giving details on how reviewers give entire plots, cuz that’s just not me, but...’Blood Money’ Book 6 doesn’t stop here for me. I really believe that Scott Pratt needs to be acknowledged as all the other lawyer authors such as John Grisham and thriller book authors..I want to say Stephen King because there are books he’s written that are not WAY out there! My point is Scott Pratt is one of the best lawyer/thriller authors out there & if you don’t read his series of characters you would not know his name...Okay now that I’ve said that...’Blood Money’ is excellent! It has all the plots and twists out there of which I expect from the Joe Dillard Series, love Joe ❤️
Real quick with my short honest review. I will say one thing which I didn’t understand was why Scott wrote about a rape scene of which a young mans girlfriend was attacked and raped. Due to
the horrible crime, and another horrible incident, he then kills the attacker. For close to the entire book you never hear about it? Yes I understood that with each turn, especially in a lawyers case load, not everything is tied up with a pink bow. Yet that particular case had absolutely nothing to do with what book 6 was about..so I went about my listening & reading with a ‘huh’?
Anyway, past that small issue. I finished this literally in exactly the time allotted, I never put it down! I landscaped my yard, I listened, I fell asleep and Tim’s voice was still speaking! There are plots, twists, and turns with every chapter...I promise you will not be disappointed! Recommended with 5 + stars ✨👊👊
One last pet peeve, the ending was wrapped up too quickly but it didn’t kill the overall greatness! Can’t wait to download Book 7 😎😎
I promise no spoilers and I’m not into giving details on how reviewers give entire plots, cuz that’s just not me, but...’Blood Money’ Book 6 doesn’t stop here for me. I really believe that Scott Pratt needs to be acknowledged as all the other lawyer authors such as John Grisham and thriller book authors..I want to say Stephen King because there are books he’s written that are not WAY out there! My point is Scott Pratt is one of the best lawyer/thriller authors out there & if you don’t read his series of characters you would not know his name...Okay now that I’ve said that...’Blood Money’ is excellent! It has all the plots and twists out there of which I expect from the Joe Dillard Series, love Joe ❤️
Real quick with my short honest review. I will say one thing which I didn’t understand was why Scott wrote about a rape scene of which a young mans girlfriend was attacked and raped. Due to
the horrible crime, and another horrible incident, he then kills the attacker. For close to the entire book you never hear about it? Yes I understood that with each turn, especially in a lawyers case load, not everything is tied up with a pink bow. Yet that particular case had absolutely nothing to do with what book 6 was about..so I went about my listening & reading with a ‘huh’?
Anyway, past that small issue. I finished this literally in exactly the time allotted, I never put it down! I landscaped my yard, I listened, I fell asleep and Tim’s voice was still speaking! There are plots, twists, and turns with every chapter...I promise you will not be disappointed! Recommended with 5 + stars ✨👊👊
One last pet peeve, the ending was wrapped up too quickly but it didn’t kill the overall greatness! Can’t wait to download Book 7 😎😎
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